Chemical poisoning in Turkey’s southeast: 92 people hospitalized
In Aktaş village of Turkey’s southeastern province of Siirt, nearly a hundred people were hospitalized on Monday (September 11) due to chemical poisoning caused by a leak from a barrel that was reported to have been brought to the village by a group of children who had found it near their village.
Shortly after the children opened the lid of the large unknown container in the village, 92 people – at least 23 of them children – began having symptoms of chemical poisoning, such as vomiting and nausea.
Provincial head of the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) in Siirt, Mehmet Cahit Akkoyun, said the poisoning is suspected to be caused by chlorine and carbon spill.
In a released statement, Health Ministry said while 92 people were hospitalized, the village was evacuated and the remaining 60 people were taken to a nearby zone monitored by Turkey’s Red Crescent (Kızılay). The Ministry also stated the poisoning happened due to ‘chlorine spill’.